Add your HEIF file
Drop one or more .heif files onto the converter above, or browse for them. They load into browser memory only — nothing is uploaded, so there is no size-based pricing and no server queue.
HEIF to APNG
Converting a .heif image to .apng re-encodes the pixels for a different balance of size, quality, and support. Free, private, and validated — the file never leaves your browser.
Private for supported formats — processed in your browser
Runs on your deviceConvert supported files
Drop HEIF files here
Batch files can each use a different output. Nothing uploads for local conversions.
Working inputs include camera RAW, browser-local audio/video, PDF, CBZ/CBR comics, office documents, ebooks, markup, 3D models, structured text, images, and archives.About converting HEIF image to Animated PNG
Converting a .heif image to .apng re-encodes the pixels for a different balance of size, quality, and support. A .heif file uses the High Efficiency Image File Format, a codec-agnostic container standard rather than a single compression scheme. Where .heic specifically means HEVC-coded content, the .heif extension signals the general container, which can in principle wrap HEVC, AV1, or even JPEG payloads along with sequences and derived images.
An .apng file is an animated extension of PNG: full 24-bit color with 8-bit alpha per frame, in a stream that plain PNG decoders read as a normal still image. It delivers the smooth, semi-transparent animation that GIF's 256-color palette never could, and it is the format behind many messaging-app sticker packs. For this route the practical draw is 16.7 million colors and real alpha per frame, versus GIF's 256 and binary transparency and backward compatible: old decoders still render the first frame — balanced against files grow quickly for long or high-motion animations, where animated WebP/AVIF or video compress far better, which is worth knowing before you commit a large batch.
Why convert HEIF to APNG?
The practical trigger for this conversion is usually a mismatch: with .heif, the extension alone does not reveal the codec inside, so a given .heif file may or may not decode on a given device. Switching to .apng buys you 16.7 million colors and real alpha per frame, versus GIF's 256 and binary transparency, which is why it is the better fit for animated stickers (Apple's iMessage and LINE both build on APNG). Because the conversion runs locally, trying it costs nothing but a few seconds of compute on your own machine.
HEIF vs APNG at a glance
| Aspect | HEIF image (.heif) | Animated PNG (.apng) |
|---|---|---|
| Format type | Lossy — discards detail it judges invisible to shrink files | Lossless — every pixel or sample is preserved exactly |
| How it stores data | iSO BMFF box structure: items, item properties, and item references describe images declaratively | adds three chunk types to PNG: acTL (animation control), fcTL (frame control), and fdAT (frame data) |
| Strongest at | container-level workflows that need bursts, brackets, or multi-resolution imagery in one file | animated stickers (Apple's iMessage and LINE both build on APNG) |
| Weak spot | the extension alone does not reveal the codec inside, so a given .heif file may or may not decode on a given device | files grow quickly for long or high-motion animations, where animated WebP/AVIF or video compress far better |
Pick APNG as the output
Select .apng in the output menu next to each file. The menu only offers targets this engine can genuinely produce, so if APNG is selectable, the route is real and validated.
Convert on your device
Press Convert. Decoding and re-encoding happen on your device using the browser's native image pipeline and hand-tuned encoders.
Verify and download
Each result is signature-checked before the download unlocks, so a failed encode can never masquerade as a valid APNG file. Outputs keep the original filename with the .apng extension.
HEIF to APNG questions, answered
Will converting HEIF to APNG lose quality?
No new loss is introduced — since heif is lossy-oriented and apng is lossless-oriented, everything the .heif file still contains is carried over exactly. What was already discarded by the original lossy encode cannot be recovered, though; converting to .apng does not "restore" quality.
Is it private to convert HEIF files here?
Yes — the .heif file is processed inside your browser tab and never uploaded. Decoding and re-encoding happen on your device using the browser's native image pipeline and hand-tuned encoders. Close the tab and the file is gone from memory.
Where will the APNG file work?
Chrome 59+, Firefox 3+, Safari 8+, and Edge 79+ all animate .apng natively, so browser coverage is complete. Desktop support is patchier — most image editors open only the first frame — and social platforms frequently flatten or re-encode uploads, so test the target platform before committing to it.
Will the APNG file be bigger or smaller than my HEIF?
Larger, sometimes much larger. A lossless .apng must store every pixel or sample the decoder produced, without the perceptual shortcuts .heif used. Use this route for editing headroom, not for saving space.
What happens to the metadata in my HEIF file?
In .heif, eXIF and XMP are first-class metadata items in the container, with ICC profiles or CICP parameters describing color; what survives conversion depends on the tool, not the format. Re-encoding through the browser pipeline does not carry embedded metadata into the output, which doubles as a privacy scrub — check the exported file if you specifically need tags preserved.